Connect’s work area
CONNECT International focuses on four key pillars of work – Access, Rights, Innovation, and Citizenship. Together with our members, we design projects, policies, and advocacy actions that create a safer, more inclusive, and rights-based digital society
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General about
CONNECT International is a European network bringing together youth organizations, NGOs, public bodies, and experts who share the same vision: a digital world that respects human rights and empowers active citizens. Our work supports the mainstreaming of digital rights and ensures that young people play a leading role in shaping the digital transformation of our societies.
Through projects, training programs, advocacy campaigns, and research, CONNECT creates opportunities for learning, exchange, and co-creation. We foster cross-sector collaboration, bridging gaps between civil society, policymakers, and technology experts, ensuring that digitalization works for everyone.
Digital Mainstreaming
Access means creating equal opportunities for everyone to benefit from digital technologies. CONNECT promotes inclusion, participation, and sustainability by embedding digital tools, skills, and mindsets into broader systems and everyday practices, from non-formal education and sports to culture, mental health, and communication.
We work with youth organizations, educators, and decision-makers to ensure that digital innovation is not siloed but integrated across all areas of youth work, education, and community life. By setting quality standards and supporting the structured adoption of digital approaches, we help individuals and organizations fully participate in society and contribute to building resilient, connected communities.
Digital Rights
CONNECT International’s Digital Rights pillar focuses on protecting human rights online and ensuring the digital environment respects freedom, dignity, and equality. We address issues such as privacy, data protection, freedom of expression, combating hate speech, and ethical technology use.
Our activities include developing policy recommendations, running awareness campaigns, and training youth workers and educators to defend digital rights. We strengthen digital education, preparedness, and resilience, helping communities confront harmful digital dynamics and advocate for rights-based digital futures rooted in ethical innovation.
Digital Transformation
Innovation is at the heart of how CONNECT responds to challenges in the digital era. We develop tools, platforms, and methodologies that make digital practice more effective, inclusive, and sustainable, harnessing technology as a catalyst for education, creativity, civic engagement, and meaningful participation across all sectors.
Together with our members, we co-create pilot projects, develop open digital solutions, and share best practices that other organizations can replicate. This pillar allows us to test fresh ideas, gather evidence of what works, and scale successful models across Europe, ensuring digital transformation remains ethical, youth-centred, and inclusive.
Digital Citizenship
Citizenship is about empowering individuals to actively shape the digital public sphere. CONNECT provides opportunities for young people and communities to practice digital democracy, contribute to decision-making, and promote inclusive values online.
We design educational programs that foster critical thinking, encourage dialogue, and teach skills for responsible and ethical participation in digital spaces. By combining civic empowerment with digital literacy, inclusion, and well-being, we strengthen civic space and ensure that digitalization supports democracy and amplifies the voices of those who need to be heard the most.
